Coming together - the school year

So the other day I was stressing over how I will get the girls lessons going this coming fall.  Since we all haven't been feeling 100% this past week.  Since my stress blog, I took some time to do some research.  I googled and looked on pinterest (my addiction) for ideas.  I don't quite have a system in place for this fall and the girls weren't all to fond of last years system.  I'm patiently waiting the program my husband is creating me and as he puts it I've asked for the world.  I need the program to be versatile as we are not just one style of homeschooling.  We are pretty eclectic.  We do book work, computer lessons, we will also be in a co-op 1 day a week this year.  We will  also go on field trips and having life lessons and fun.  I need a program to document all of this and do more.  Nothing on the market is just perfect I've tried a few.  Having hubby create it if it's just not perfect he can redesign it for me or add what I need (got to love having a programmer in teh family).  With that said I need a temporary system till he's done.

I think we will go back to using the calendar system till my program is complete and just hand writing all the lessons in and keeping track of what life lessons we encounter.  This system worked but was very time consuming.  I prefer to type than hand write.

I spent a few hours yesterday really learning how to use Discovery Education http://www.discoveryeducation.com/ .  We have used this program for the past 6 years at least and I was not using this website to its full potential.  I deleted my complicated system and started working on how the website is meant to work and I'm still learning all the features and they have added a lot since we first started using Discovery Education.  If you are interested in signing up for Discovery Education, Homeschoolers buyers co-op is having an amazing sale on it.  If enough people sign up we can get it as low as $99.00.  I usually pay $199 a year for this.  https://www.homeschoolbuyersco-op.org/discovery-education-streaming-plus/?c=1 and it's currently at $187.

The next thing I spent time on was Khan academy https://www.khanacademy.org/.  This site is free and is amazing.  They have so much to offer but I was so lost using it.  I finally found how I can see what my kids have done and if they completed it, struggled with it or excelled at it.  This will be helpful.  I now feel confident that Khan academy will help them get the math concepts they have been struggling with.

We will also be using spellingcity this year.  I've tried in the past to use it but never took the time to really grasp what they have to offer.  I'd get frustrated and try something else which also failed.  This time I took more time (maybe the thyroid brain isn't as foggy either lately) and I have it figured out and we will use it again.  The girls have enjoyed it in the past, I was the one struggling with it.

We may also do one or two live classes on currclick.com or this year we might just take a break.  We'll see what they want to do.

Those are a few things I have managed to get figured out for the fall.  I still need to create a reading list, learn how to use The Happy Scientist website, work on history and their writing lessons, as well as their interest led learning and I'm sure other things as the year goes on.  But this is a good start and stuff the girls really want to do.

4-H Fair 2013

Have you heard of 4-H?  I know a lot of people who have never heard of it.  Here is a definition:   A youth organization sponsored by the Department of Agriculture and offering instruction in agriculture and home economics.  The 4 H's mean Head, Heart, Health and Hands.  4-H has so much to offer kids from agriculture to sewing, to woodworking, to photography.. I think you get the idea.  Just about everything you can think of.  There is also public speaking and community service.  The friendships you create are amazing!  

Does that sound like fun?  It is!  I was in 4-H when I was younger for about 2 or 3 years.  I have some fond memories of the projects I worked on and the ribbons I won.  I wanted to give that to my girls.  We've been in 4-H now for the past 6 years and we all enjoy it.  

This past weekend was our counties fair.  Our county pairs up with another county and we put on a pretty nice fair.  

Both my girls were managers in the home arts barn, something they really enjoy.  I have watched both of them grow and mature into wonderful young girls and I have to say 4-H is part of that.  Kev and I help out in any way we can.  

The girls work all year long on projects and then put them in the fair to be judged.  The 4-H judges based on the danish system.  The judges do not judge one person’s work by comparing it to another’s, you are judged against yourself. The evaluation is made against a standard. A judge looks to see whether certain requirements are met.  

One project A wanted to do was a desk redo.  We looked around and finally found a desk that cost only $10 at our local Saver's store.  It was a nice sturdy desk.  She learned how to sand, spray paint, sand the spray paint down and spray again till it was smooth.  She also learned how decoupage scrapbook paper onto the desk to give it some pop.  That got her an outstanding exhibitor ribbon.  

Then she got an court of honor of a picture she took.  Between these two that got her into premier.  So then she got to go around and talk to the judges about her projects. 

In the end she got 4th place.  She really wanted 9th place cause she liked the color ribbon.  That's my girl in it for the fun of it not being competitive.

My oldest had a good year too, she didn't make court of honor this year but she is ok with that. She enjoyed making all her projects and learning some new skills in art and jewerly making.   At the fair she had fun teaching kids how to hula hoop and supporting her 'lil sis.  

See what your local 4-H has to offer your kids and family.  

The fall schedule ????

As i sit here at the computer trying to figure out the fall schedule, I sit and wonder how other families manage getting it all done.  Between the doctor appointments (I have some health issues) and kids doctor appointments, outside the home classes and activities, lessons to be done at home, special projects, and time to spend with friends.  There is really never enough time in the day, week or month.

I want the kids to have those meaningful friendships and I know they have several, but it gets really hard as the kids get older and interests go in different directions and time is even more limited.  I know at this age I was on the phone all the time, but seems not all their friends like to chat on the phone or have facetime or skype.  Some of our friends kids don't like classes or the classes we are taking are to far for some of our friends to join in.  Time gets limited and mom gets stressed trying to do it all.

Maybe in other states you have everything very close to you, but in CT not everything is close by.  We don't even know the homeschoolers in our own town.  I know there are a few but our families philosophies would not mesh up with the ones I have heard that live in the town I live in and it seems that even if you have a different political or religious view they don't have time for you.  It's really kinda of sad, people who should be accepting of others really are not. So we choose to drive and even that is getting harder for me to do.

Well most people would say why don't you just send your kids to school.  That really is not an option.  The education the girls are getting is so much more than they would ever get in school.  If you asked them if they ever wanted to go to school you would get a firm NOOOOOO!!  So don't even bother going there.

In the past I have tried to schedule home days.  That never really worked.  I try to take my kids to friends houses and I head back home to do things.  That also bugs me cause I would like to see my friends too.  I have asked in the past for them to join us in classes or other activities, but that hasn't really worked out.  So, now I'm sitting here figuring out what is important this year and what days we will be doing what.  How will I have time to exercise (I have a lot of weight I HAVE to lose for my health) and I always seem to get put on the backburner, how will I have time teach and have enough time to run to doctor appointments and also get the kids time to spend with their friends.

In a perfect world we'd all live close, all do classes and activities together.  Till then I have to figure out something that will work and make everyone happy including me.

Off to the land of google...